My Brother’s Keeper by Bill Kassel

What if you were Jesus’ protective older brother? Could you navigate the courts of Rome & Jerusalem to save him? Historical fiction novels covering the ministry of Christ are a dime a dozen among Christian fiction, but Kassel throws a fresh new spin on the genre by telling his story from the perspective of James the Just, Bishop of Jerusalem, student of the famed rabbi Gamaliel and protective elder brother of Jesus of Nazareth.

“But,” you might say, “Jesus didn’t have a brother! His
mother was a perpetual virgin!” Don’t you worry, there’s no heresy here. There
are actually two oral traditions about what the Bible means by referring to
James as Christ’s brother. One tradition builds upon the fact that even today,
the Arabic, Aramaic, and Hebrew languages have one word for brother and cousin,
and that James is Jesus’ cousin. The other tradition is that St. Joseph was a
widower when he married Mary, and James was a son by his first wife. Kassel borrows
from the latter tradition. He even has St. Joseph on his deathbed, charge his
son James with the protection of his younger brother Jesus, whose strange birth
portends the tumultuous life of a prophet.

The book begins before Mary is even on the scene, and James
is his father’s favorite youngest son who plays in the family compound with the
children of his older siblings, studies with the village rabbi and dreams of
living in Jerusalem as a scholar of the law. Kassel so draws the reader into
the daily and political life of the Israelites that if it weren’t for Jesus
being in it, I’d swear this was a Jewish historical fiction novel, even more so
because Jesus’ nature is not revealed to his human family until the very end of
the book.

When Mary does show on the scene and some more miraculous
events start happening, Kassel portrays the family of St. Joseph reacting with
a natural dubiousness, fear and doubt. Though many in the extended family don’t
know what to make of this strange, despoiled, temple virgin and her claims,
they gradually welcome her in out of respect for Joseph and growing affection
for Mary. It isn’t until Roman soldiers break into their home searching for the
infant Jesus that James and his family begin to think that there is something
to this strange woman’s claim. Even then, they only surmise that perhaps this
child will be a prophet like those in ages past. The idea that Jesus could be
the Messiah hangs in the air, but each finds the idea too unlikely to entertain
for long.

Amidst all of this, though, James is growing up. His father
misses his Bat Mizvah because he is away in hiding in Egypt with Mary and
Jesus. Shortly after his father does return, James is accepted into the school
of Hellel, the most famed rabbi in Israel. His father travels with him to help
him get settled in his new home in Jerusalem. They find him a room to let with
a tin merchant with political aspirations named Joseph of Arimathea. In between
his studies at the temple, James acts as message courier between his boarder
and his boarder’s political mentor, Zachariah, father of infant John the
Baptist.

As James grows, he visits his family and younger brother
Jesus on holidays and begins to climb in political influence, so much so that
even Pilate begins to go to him for advice. When Jesus begins his preaching,
James hopes to use this political influence to protect his younger brother and fulfill
his deathbed promises to his father.

Because James lives so far from his family and has so little
interaction with them, this book reads more like an ancient political thriller
than a gospel revival. It helped me to understand many elements of the gospel
that had been vague to me, such as why the temple priests were so threatened by
a country preacher, what Mary’s early childhood was like and how it affected
her, or how the son of the esteemed priest Zachariah could end up wandering the
wilderness. James regards his younger brother with that same mix of confusion,
criticism and dogged acceptance that many older siblings have in regard to
their younger. Given the strange circumstances of his birth James has long
accepted that he will never understand Jesus and just does his best to provide
him with support and protection.

However, I do have two issues with this book, though they
aren’t deal breakers. The first is that the romantic subplot between James and
one of the women who follow Jesus was never resolved. The second is that the
depiction of the crucifixion lacked the sort of emotional punch I have come to
expect in this genre. If you are squeamish or tired of sad scenes however, you
might think that is a good thing.

Overall though, this is a refreshing take on this classic
story. Christians, Atheists and Jews alike will find it informative, well
grounded, and engaging. If all of Kassel’s books are as well researched and
unique, I hope to see more of them.

Themes: gospels, St.
Joseph, St. Mary, Jesus, St. James, crucifixion, Pilate, Jerusalem, Judaism,
ancient Israel SM Post: What
if you were Jesus’ protective older brother? Could you navigate the courts of
Rome & Jerusalem to save him?